Sierra Leone

News about Sierra Leone, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jul. 30, 2015

World Health Organization reports Guinea and Sierra Leone have had seven new Ebola cases in past week, lowest weekly total of new infections in over a year; cautions that there is still substantial risk of outbreaks due to thousands who were exposed in region. MORE

Jun. 20, 2015

Tekmira Pharmaceuticals says experimental Ebola drug it has been developing, called TKM-Ebola-Guinea, has not worked on patients in Sierra Leone, dealing setback to what was considered promising new treatment. MORE

May. 20, 2015

World Health Organization reports nearly fourfold increase of new Ebola cases in Guinea and Sierra Leone in latest week of reporting, to about 35; say some risky practices like unsafe burials of Ebola victims contributes to rise. MORE

May. 17, 2015

Lindsey Hallen, nurse at Manhattan's Lenox Hill Hospital, says she would like to return to Sierra Leone, where she had profound experience volunteering in Ebola treatment center. MORE

May. 14, 2015

Italian nurse who had been working with aid group Emergency in Sierra Leone tests positive for Ebola virus upon his return to Italy and is hospitalized in an infectious diseases hospital in Rome. MORE

Apr. 16, 2015

Pres Obama calls for rebuilding of decimated health systems in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone and continued global response there following easing of Ebola crisis. MORE

Apr. 15, 2015

More than 8,000 schools in Sierra Leone reopen after being closed for nine months due to the Ebola epidemic. MORE

Apr. 13, 2015

Inquiry by international health officials and interviews with staff reveal pattern of safety lapses at Ebola treatment center run by Boston-based charity Partners in Health in Port Loko, Sierra Leone. MORE

Mar. 31, 2015

Guinea, where Ebola remains entrenched even while ebbing in other West African nations, closes border with Sierra Leone in new attempt to eradicate disease. MORE

Mar. 28, 2015

Sierra Leone makes push to eradicate Ebola by confining population to their homes for three days, with exceptions for religious services, while thousands of teams search for cases. MORE

Mar. 23, 2015

Governments and relief organizations around world take of stock of mistakes made in responding to Ebola outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea; lessons learned may help limit future epidemics. MORE

Mar. 17, 2015

American aid worker who contracted Ebola in Sierra Leone is given much higher standard of care than Sierra Leonean colleague who developed virus at same time; is treated at specialized center in Freetown while other man is turned away; both worked for charity Partners in Health, which promotes equal standards of medical care for both rich and poor countries. MORE

Mar. 15, 2015

Ten American aid workers who may have come into contact with Ebola virus in Sierra Leone are being sent back to United States for monitoring. MORE

Mar. 14, 2015

American clinician working with Partners in Health to combat Ebola in Sierra Leone is evacuated to National Institutes of Health clinical center in Bethesda, Md, after becoming infected with the virus. MORE

Mar. 13, 2015

Health officials say two relief workers in Sierra Leone, one from American medical aid organization Partners In Health and one from British military, have been infected with deadly Ebola virus. MORE

Mar. 10, 2015

Report from Save the Children concludes that it would have cost $1.6 billion to bring health care systems to minimum standard in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, preventative measure that may have averted much of Ebola outbreak's $4 billion price tag. MORE

Mar. 6, 2015

Dr Lewis Rubinson, who was given experimental Ebola vaccine after accidentally jabbing himself with needle in 2014 in Ebola ward in Sierra Leone, describes case in article and editorial published in JAMA; blood tests later found no evidence that he had ever been infected with Ebola. MORE

Mar. 1, 2015

Fresh outbreak of Ebola in Sierra Leone caused by sick fisherman coming ashore highlights challenges of completely eliminating any trace of highly contagious diseases; surge of new cases in country's capital of Freetown offers warning that war on Ebola, while progress has been made, is still critical. MORE

Feb. 23, 2015

Liberia lifts its curfew but its border with Sierra Leone remains closed, due to Ebola fears; outbreak has diminished, with only a few cases reported in recent weeks. MORE

Feb. 15, 2015

Lara Taylor-Pearce, Sierra Leone's national auditor, releases report finding government ministers lost track of more than $3 million in international emergency funds intended to fight Ebola virus. MORE

Jan. 11, 2015

Bureh Beach Journal; small but dedicated group of surfers who make up Sierra Leone's Bureh Beach Surf Club have continued to pursue their passion for surfing even as country has been ravaged by Ebola outbreak; club had just been formed when virus arrived, but no members have yet been affected, and their focus on activity seems to be mirrored in society that has become keenly interested in health and fitness in wake of disease. MORE

Jan. 4, 2015

Pauline Cafferkey, Scottish nurse who was found to have Ebola after returning from volunteer work in Sierra Leone, is in critical condition at hospital in London. MORE

Jan. 1, 2015

World Health Organization reports Ebola virus continues to spread with 2014 deaths totaling 7,905 out of 20,206 known cases; says last week Sierra Leone reported highest number of new cases in capital Freetown in past month and Guinea has increases suggesting epidemic is growing; notes, however, that overall number of cases in Sierra Leone is declining. MORE

Dec. 31, 2014

Sierra Leone Journal; Ebola outbreak in West African countries of Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia continues to affect all forms of business; efforts to check progress of disease are proving costly and it remains unclear how and when countries' economies will bounce back; in Freetown, Sierra Leone, damage the outbreak has wrought on local businesses is particularly apparent. MORE

Dec. 30, 2014

Woman who had been health care worker in Sierra Leone is being treated for Ebola in Glasgow hospital. MORE

Dec. 30, 2014

Ebola epidemic in Africa, which has caused 7,800 deaths since it began, appeared to be drawing to close in spring of 2014 and may have been brought to halt then, were it not for series of response missteps and complicating factors; doctors and experts failed to adequately track disease and to appreciate that 2014 outbreak would differ from previous strains in catastrophic ways; in addition, lack of infrastructure and resources, local distrust of government and movement of tribal people across borders contributed to disease's spread. MORE

Dec. 21, 2014

Dispatch column by Jeffrey Gettleman observes that Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone should not be as bad as it is, given that treatment for disease is relatively simple and revolves around managing dehydration; describes feeling helpless in face of people who are suffering and who desperately need basic medical care. MORE

Dec. 18, 2014

World Food Program and Food and Agriculture Organization reports Ebola outbreak in West Africa could double people facing hunger in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, to more than one million, by March. MORE

Dec. 17, 2014

United Nations Sec Gen Ban Ki-moon is set to announce his visit to Ebola-stricken countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone; virus has tested Ban's leadership, as organization has been accused of inadequate response to the outbreak. MORE

Dec. 14, 2014

United Nations Children's Fund says there may be 10,000 orphans who have lost parents to Ebola virus in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, many of whom are stigmatized or shunned by their own communities; extended families have been reluctant to absorb children from Ebola-stricken households because of worries that these children may be carriers and might sicken their own. MORE

Dec. 9, 2014

World Health Organization reports steep declines in malaria cases and deaths compared with 2000, but says it could worsen again in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, where public health systems have been overwhelmed by Ebola virus. MORE

Dec. 8, 2014

Dr Ian Crozier, in interview, discusses his near-death experience after contracting Ebola virus while treating patients in Sierra Leone; Crozier, who until recently remained anonymous, spent 40 days battling disease after being airlifted to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta; relates some of hardships and dangers that have confronted those who have volunteered to fight epidemic, which has claimed lives of more than 330 health care workers. MORE

Dec. 7, 2014

Aid officials in Sierra Leone say poor coordination among aid groups, government mismanagement and glaring inefficiencies are costing countless lives; situation can be seen clearly in Kerry Town, where 60 of 80 beds in new Ebola clinic are not being used, despite fact that people in the area are dying because they do not have access to clinics. MORE

Dec. 3, 2014

Doctors Without Borders warns slow and uneven international response to Ebola crisis in West Africa could lead to further setbacks; group's international president Dr Joanne Liu acknowledges outpouring of help but says most of the work has fallen to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra, poor countries at heart of outbreak; concerns are in contrast to more optimistic appraisal by World Health Organization. MORE

Nov. 28, 2014

Ebola virus continues to rage in Sierra Leone, despite big international aid effort, with more than 1,800 new cases reported in November; citizens, faced with slow response times, are taking matters into their own hands, creating dangerous situation by monitoring sick themselves in makeshift isolation centers; health officials say progress is being made in neighboring Liberia. MORE

Nov. 27, 2014

World Health Organization warns that Sierra Leone is set to eclipse Liberia as worst-hit of West African nations ravaged by Ebola; reports 600 new cases in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea in past week, suggesting that countries will miss December target for achieving important progress benchmarks. MORE

Nov. 21, 2014

Dr Thomas R Frieden, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director, reports good progress in fighting Ebola in Nigeria thanks to international and local efforts; suggests that international aid could similarly reduce infections in hard-hit countries of Guinea and Sierra Leone, where current infection rate is uncertain. MORE

Nov. 18, 2014

Dr Martin Salia, Ebola patient who arrived from Sierra Leone in extremely critical condition, dies at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha; advanced stage of his illness presented challenge too great to overcome. MORE

Nov. 14, 2014

Op-Ed article by former refugee Chernor Bah warns that devastation unleashed by Ebola in Sierra Leone is not just health emergency but tragedy that has swept away fragile roots of new society that emerged after country's civil war; says that most damaging effect of Ebola may be its gutting of nation's school system. MORE

Oct. 31, 2014

New York Gov Andrew M Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announce they will offer employee protection and financial guarantees for health care workers joining fight against Ebola outbreak in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. MORE

Oct. 24, 2014

Federal officials and pharmaceutical companies are planning to start two large clinical trials of Ebola vaccines in West African countries devastated by the outbreak; trials will run separately, one in Liberia, the other in Sierra Leone, and involve different designs to ensure at least one produces usable information. MORE

Oct. 24, 2014

Editorial supports new 21-day monitoring rules to be placed on travelers coming in to the United States from Ebola-affected countries Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone; contends measures are more effective than a harmful ban on travelers who have been in those countries since ban would include volunteers who have been battling the epidemic, and discourage more from joining the fight. MORE

Oct. 23, 2014

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention place restrictions on travelers from West African countries Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, which all have Ebola outbreaks; new federal regulations require travelers to check in with state or local health departments and report morning and evening temperatures for three weeks, along with any other potential symptoms of the disease. MORE

Oct. 22, 2014

Obama administration announces that passengers arriving to the United States from Ebola-affected countries, such as Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, in West Africa must enter through one of five selected airports that are screening for the disease. MORE

Oct. 22, 2014

Ebola outbreak is wiping out small gains made over past decade in war-scarred parts of West Africa, as schools shut down, immunization campaigns are suspended, and farmers abandon their fields; crisis is threatening hard-won stability in Guinea, Libera and Sierra Leone, as tensions simmer. MORE

Oct. 15, 2014

Jere Longman On Soccer column examines plight of SIerra Leone's national soccer team, caught amid self-destructive feud between nation's soccer federation and sports ministry; observes that team was already exhausted from playing road-only games due to Ebola outbreak. MORE

Oct. 14, 2014

Sierra Leone's national soccer team is enduring a series of demeaning and discouraging indignities since outbreak of Ebola in West Africa; team is barred from playing in its own stricken country and it must play every match on the road as it struggles to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, continent’s biennial championship. MORE

Oct. 11, 2014

International health officials battling Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone approve plans to help families tend to patients at home; it is recognition that they are overwhelmed and have little chance of getting enough treatment beds in place quickly to meet the surging need; decision signifies a significant shift in the struggle against the rampaging disease. MORE

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General Information on Sierra Leone

Official Name: Republic of Sierra Leone
Capital: Free Town (Current local time)
Government Type: Constitutional Democracy
Population: 6.15 million
Area: 29,925 square miles; slightly smaller than South Carolina
Languages: English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area)
Literacy: Total Population: [35%] Male: [47%]; Female: [24%]
Year of Independence: 1961

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